Coupler operating device



March 10, 1959 p, LAHEY ETAL 2,876,912

COUPLER OPERATING DEVICE Filed Nov. 19, 1956 INVENTORS Parker JGewyeZaZ/y ,z i g United States Patent COUPLER OPERATING DEVICE ParkerJ. Lahey, Chicago, Ill., and George R. OLeary,

Highland, Ind., assignors to Standard Railway Equipment ManufacturingCompany, Chicago, 111., a corporation of Delaware Application November19, 1956, Serial No. 623,016

3 Claims. (Cl. 213-166) This invention relates to railway car coupleroperating mechanisms. More particularly the invention is concerned withan improved operating rod and bracket in an apparatus for operating thelocking hook of a car coupler.

W the progressively increasing use of cushion underes and long traveldraft gears in railway freight cars, a total longitudinal movement ofcar coupler and uncoupling lever of 24 is required, which, incombination with the side travel of couplers, takes up the clearancebetween the uncoupler lever hook and the coupler rotor. It is important,therefore, that this clearance be maintained, otherwise the lack ofclearance could be a contributing factor in causing undesirablebreak-in-twos.

Consequently, it is a principal object of this invention to provide acoupler operating rod and bracket which will maintain the desiredclearance at the rotor lug of the coupler under all operating conditionsof the coupler.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear in thefollowing description thereof and from an examination of theaccompanying drawing which illusstrates one embodiment of the inventionand wherein like reference characters indicate like parts.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is an elevational view showing the uncoupling rod supportedadjacent its handle end in a bracket and connected at its other end tothe lock lifter of a car coupler.

Figure 2 is a top plan View of the rod and its supporting bracketshowing fragmentary portions of the car.

Figure 3 is an end elevation of Figure 1.

In the drawings indicates the body portion of an operating rod for anAssociation of American Railroads Standard E Coupler, which rod isprovided at its outer end with a depending handle portion 11, and at itsinner end with a hook portion 12, adapted for connection with an eye 13,of the lock lifter 14 which is pivotally connected at one end to thelink which lifts the lock of the coupler 17, upon rotation of said rodin one direction. The rod is supported by a bracket attached to a cornerbracket of the car.

The bracket for said rod comprises a pressed mounting plate having anupright portion 21 provided with spaced holes through which rivets 22may extend and secure said bracket to a corner bracket 23 of the car.The mounting plate is bent at less than a right angle to form a lowerflange 24, which extends substantially the entire width of the plate, toprovide said plate with the requisite structural strength and rigidity.Flange 24 is also turned downwardly forming a reflange 25 which acts asa stop for the handle of the rod when in rest position. Issuing fromeach end of flange 24 are arms 26 which extend upwardly and outwardly inparallel vertical planes. These 2,876,912 Patented Mar. 10, 1959 armsare provided with alined holes which support opposite ends of ahorizontal bar 27 which extends between said arms and has a head 28 atone end. The other end has a removable cotter 29 extending therethroughto removably hold the bar 27 in place and extending between the spacedarms. This bracket is fixed to the corner bracket of the car so that rod27 extends substantially parallel with the car end, although it couldextend more in axial alinement with the rod axis if preferred.

The handle portion 11 of the rod extends upwardly behind the bar 27 overand down around the bar, forming an eye surrounding the bar as clearlyshown in Figure 3. The inner diameter of the eye is greater than thediameter of bar 27, to provide a loose fit, so that there can beconsiderable angling of the rod 10 in relation to the fixed bar 27without causing any binding of the eye on bar 27. The eye just describedcompletely surrounds the bracket bar 27 and contacts the handle portionas shown in Figure 3, so that when the handle 11 is manipulated torotate the rod 10 anti-clockwise about its axis of r0 tation, there isno tendency in case of strain to open the eye. The bar 27 is in lengthat least the same as the distance of travel laterally of the coupler, sothat the eye of the rod 10 may slide on said bar 27 freely duringmovements of the coupler in operation without binding.

We claim:

1. A railway car coupler operating mechanism for a longitudinally andlaterally movable coupler, comprising a bracket secured to a railwaycar, laterally of the coupler and having a substantially horizontal barsup ported thereby, an operating rod connected at its inner end to saidcoupler to operate the same upon rotation of said rod, the outer portionof said rod being turned upwardly and formed into an eye entirely to oneside of said rod and loosely encircling said bar, and then extendingdownwardly in a direction substantially normal to the axis of said eye,forming a handle portion located entirely to the opposite side of saidrod to rotate said rod to operate the coupler.

2. A supporting bracket for an operating rod adapted to operate a carcoupler upon manual rotation of said rod, said bracket comprising amounting plate for attaching said bracket to a car, and a lower flangeissuing from the lower edge of said mounting plate, arms issuing fromthe ends of said lower flange in spaced parallel planes that are normalto the plane of said mounting plate, and a bar extending between saidarms to slidingly and pivotally support said rod thereon.

3. An operating mechanism for a railway car coupler, said mechanismcomprising a rotatable rod provided with a hook at one end to beconnected to a car coupler to operate said coupler upon rotation of saidrod in one direction, said rod being turned laterally adjacent its otherend and formed into an eye entirely to one side of said rod, and ahandle portion issuing from said eye in a direction substantially normalto the axis of said eye and located entirely to the opposite side ofsaid rod, for rotating said rod.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,865,729 Small July 5, 1932 1,918,806 Gilpin July 18, 1933 1,981,179Kinne Nov. 20, 1934 2,009,930 Kelso July 30, 1935 2,356,336 Metzger Aug.22, 1944

